Analyst: iPhone, Social Games Aren't Eroding Core Market

The game industry had a down year in 2009, and softer hardware sales alongside the rise of mobile and digital revenue streams have left many investors leery of investing in traditional game publishers.

This means weaker stock for leading companies as mixed messages abound on the fate of the core market; companies like Electronic Arts have reacted to missed estimates by reducing the prices of certain console SKUs and stressing new digital revenue pipelines, while companies like Ubisoft and Activision have centralized on their core franchises for the majority of their revenues.

But Cowen Group analyst Doug Creutz says it's still a great time to be in the console business, and that new markets are simply adjacent segments, not rivals that will erode marketshare.